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Topic Review (Newest First)

08-02-2012 04:21 AM

123pugsy

Looks great!

08-01-2012 10:50 PM

Lizer

I uploaded the most recent batch of pics to my computer tonight and had this one with the primed quarter. It came out pretty nice compared to how it started.

07-14-2012 08:18 PM

Lizer

Well it wouldn't have happened without your guys' help. Even though I don't think the fix I ended up doing was one we discussed, the discussions that take place in threads like these (and my hood thread) still really shape the way one looks at metal working. If anything, it builds confidence as well. So thanks everybody!

07-14-2012 07:45 PM

123pugsy

Glad to see you got it worked out.

07-14-2012 07:25 PM

John long

That really is a difference of night and day. I know you are relieved to be getting that behind you. Keep up the good work...and pictures.

John L

07-14-2012 06:16 PM

Lizer

Well i finished this today and just about have it prepped for epoxy. I hate prepping, by the way, and I'm super anal so it takes forever.

All said and done, I ended up cutting the entire length of weld back open as I described earlier, doing it in three sections. The difference between how it is now and before is night and day. There are still small ripples but I can work with them; they can easily be covered when I glass over the seam and they're on par with what I've ended up with on all my other butt welds. But there aren't giant high spots sticking out anymore where the metal puckered to the outside. Most of the entire seam is puckered in. I found this happened largely as a result of the on-dolly hammering. I was putting my slapper behind the panel, using it as a long dolly, then using my hammer on the outside. Because I can't hold the slapper super tight against the back of the metal, I think the metal gives a little. I found when I was stretching the side that runs along the trunk it wasn't puckering in at all because I could put a lot of muscle behind the dolly. I eventually had to let up and do it as I was doing the previous sections so I would have a consistent seam all the way down.

The first six inch section I tried sits in lower than the other sections. I found it was much better to just do a long section at a time.

Hopefully tomorrow I'll get some epoxy on, then I can do my bump and filler work and get this panel on its way.

07-04-2012 04:34 AM

123pugsy

Glad to hear you're moving ahead and getting good results with this.

Of coarse you know we're gonna be waiting for pics.

07-03-2012 10:38 PM

Lizer

Ok, I have an update! I paused from this to work on build priming and blocking...almost the entire car basically.

Tonight I attempted my surgical experiment I've wanted to try for some time. If you direct yourself back to Pugsy's illustration where he circled the high and low spots on my quarter....the first red oval on the left is a really high spot, and that area is gone! All level and not ripply! Starting about where that red oval is and to the left through the green oval, I cut that weld back open for about 6 inches.

This seemed to relax that area quite a bit. Now I could take my dolly back there and actually see it in the crack--good assurance it was exactly where I wanted it to be. I wailed on it to stretch the metal. Then I'd take my slapper and planish the entire cut, then go back with my hammer to stretch some more. I then blocked it so I could see the high and low spots in the EDP coat, then used my slapper to work down the high spot with the dolly behind a low spot until it was relatively flat under the hand.

I then rewelded it back shut very carefully, splitting the distance between each weld and letting them cool naturally. Except this time after every set of two or three welds I would resume wailing to stretch, so I can keep ahead of the shrinking. A few more tacks, cool, planish, tack, cool, planish. It took quite a while but by the time it was done it was virtually ripple free in that six inch repair, and the weld was slightly puckered in so I have some room for my filler without creating an obvious bulge on the side.

I should note as it got down to the last few remaining welds, I ground down the welds and planished well before placing the last several tacks.

I'm planning on doing this to the entire weld along the side and it should bring it back to a flat surface.

04-22-2012 06:00 PM

MARTINSR

Quote:

Originally Posted by 123pugsy

Check the image below.
Don't touch the high spots circled in red.

Slap the low spots circled in green. You'll want to hear a ''ring''
on your hammer to slapper blows so that metal actually stretches.

Planish on a 2" strip along the wels seam only. Do not walk up higher or lower than this even though the temptation to do so tells you to.

You will see these low areas come up immediately and then you'll start to get a feel for it.

Thanks from me too, good illustration.

Brian

04-22-2012 05:23 PM

John long

Good info for him Pugsy. You mentioned earlier that you did not MIG weld. The problem Josh is going to run into is the MIG weld is much harder than a TIG weld. He is going to have a hard time planishing that weld enough to raise it up enough to relieve those waves. Especially since he has very limited access to the area behind it. Hopefully he can leverage a long handled spoon or slapper against a wooden block or something that will allow him to raise it but it will be tough.

I wonder Josh if you could build a tool. Maybe take a heavy steel bar or weld a bolt in a 1 inch pipe and grind the head into a crown shape. If you could make holes in the inner panel, maybe he could use that as a hammer, hitting the weld like a cue stick. That while holding the dolly on the outside. I know this is easier said than done. The bottom line is you have to be able to work the weld area enough to stretch it out to the size it was. That weld area has to grow just like pie doe does when your wife rolls it out with a rolling pin. (hope she bakes). What you are running into is the single biggest disadvantage to a MIG welder.

John L

04-22-2012 04:48 PM

123pugsy

I went out to the garage and took a piece of scrap and knocked it on dolly with a crowned face hammer and if a few seconds the metal stretched as in the pics below.

Edit: the second pic is before and the first pic is after.

04-22-2012 04:25 PM

123pugsy

Take your scrap quarter panel or other piece of sheet and go to town on it with hammer and dolly. Tap an area about 3" x 1". Practice on that until you can create a bulge. This will get you going.
There should be a discernible "ring" to your hits.

04-22-2012 04:02 PM

Lizer

Quote:

Originally Posted by 123pugsy

Check the image below.
Don't touch the high spots circled in red.

Slap the low spots circled in green. You'll want to hear a ''ring''
on your hammer to slapper blows so that metal actually stretches.

Planish on a 2" strip along the wels seam only. Do not walk up higher or lower than this even though the temptation to do so tells you to.

You will see these low areas come up immediately and then you'll start to get a feel for it.

Thanks for the illustration. How hard should I be hitting these? What you've described is what I had been doing but with little success. It's difficult to get the slapper/dolly really tight against the back of the panel, and I may also be hitting too soft or too hard.

04-22-2012 02:41 PM

123pugsy

Check the image below.
Don't touch the high spots circled in red.

Slap the low spots circled in green. You'll want to hear a ''ring''
on your hammer to slapper blows so that metal actually stretches.

Planish on a 2" strip along the wels seam only. Do not walk up higher or lower than this even though the temptation to do so tells you to.

You will see these low areas come up immediately and then you'll start to get a feel for it.

04-22-2012 02:29 PM

123pugsy

Quote:

Originally Posted by mitmaks

This is how I did it on my 68 Charger

The shape of the Charger body is very strong for minimal distortion.

The lower the crown, the more distortion that occurs.

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